This Must Be Love
by ProngsPadfoot123
Summary: A story about the marauders starting with their first year at Hogwarts and ending with their deaths. This story will be mostly canon compliant. L/J Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, and all characters belong to her. I'm just having some fun dancing around in the wonderful world she created. *On Hiatus*
1. Chapter 1: On The Platform

On The Platform

"Remus, just be careful, alright?" Lyall Lupin told his son. "Just mind your own business and no one will bother you."

Remus nodded, and swallowed heavily. He was incredibly excited to go to Hogwarts, but he was also rather nervous.

"Bye Dad. I'll see you at Christmas, right?" Remus asked. His father nodded. Remus took a deep breath, then turned and walked towards the Hogwarts Express.

—

"Have fun, James!" Fleamont Potter yelled to his son, who was already making a beeline for the train.

"Do write us sometimes, James!" Euphemia Potter called. James waved from afar, before disappearing into the scarlet steam engine.

—

"Stop doing that this instant!" Walburga Black shrieked. Sirius was making golden sparks burst out of his wand tip. "Straighten up, boy, Blacks do not slouch. I'll be expecting a letter the moment you are placed in Slytherin house."

"Yes, Mum," Sirius groaned.

"You'd better behave yourself or you'll find yourself at Durmstrang before you can say _Tojours Purs."_

"Of course, Mum. I wouldn't even think of causing trouble," Sirius answered, not really listening. He was too busy staring at the train, anticipation bubbling up inside of him.

He climbed onto the Hogwarts Express, and was immediately accosted by his cousin Narcissa.

"Your mother has instructed me to watch over you this year, Sirius." Narcissa said, rather snootily.

"Oh, bugger off," Sirius said, pushing Narcissa aside, and continuing to walk in search of a compartment. Narcissa looked rather affronted, and marched off to join the other Slytherins.

The only empty compartment he could find was housing a boy with messy black hair, and round wire glasses. He pushed the door open, hoping this boy would welcome his presence.

"Oh, hello," the boy with messy hair said. "I'm James Potter." He grinned.

"Sirius Black."

His grin seemed to disappear. "Oh. Shouldn't you be sitting somewhere else?"

"What do you mean?" Sirius said, rather defensively.

"Nothing, sorry mate. I just, um, you know what? Nevermind." He looked sheepish, so Sirius assumed his apology was authentic. He took a seat opposite James.

Just then, the compartment door was pushed open once again. It was a red headed girl, and she appeared to be crying.

"Hi," James said to her. "What house do you suppose you'll be in?" Sirius could tell he was trying to be nice to her.

"Oh, I'm not sure. My family are all muggles, you see." She answered quietly.

"I know I'll be sorted into Gryffindor," said James proudly. "Just like my Dad. It's the best house for—

but before he could finish another figure appeared in the doorway. He had long greasy hair, and a large hooked nose.

"Only if you'd rather be brawny than brainy." He scoffed.

"Where are you hoping to go, then?" Sirius smirked. "Seeing as you're neither?"

James howled with laughter and Lily grabbed the other boy and pulled him out the door.

"Come on, Severus." She said, leading him away.

James and Sirius's laughter died down once they saw the lady pushing the trolley come to a stop in front of their open door.

"Anything from the trolley, dears?"

"Could I get some pumpkin pasties and chocolate frogs?" James asked, handing over a few coins.

"I'll take licorice wands, jelly slugs, ice mice…." Sirius seemed to list every kind of candy the woman had. He handed over a huge sackful of galleons in exchange for an armful of sweets.

"So, thats true then, about the Black fortune?" James asked. Sirius looked uncomfortable for a moment and then scoffed.

"Oh, please, you're a Potter. It's not like your destitute." James grinned in response.

Two more figures had suddenly appeared in the door. One was rather plump, with blond hair. The other looked somewhat sickly, and had gray hair and hazel eyes.

"Hi, would it be alright if we sat here?" The blond boy asked. "Everywhere else is full, and we got lost on the other side of the train and… whoah." He breathed. "That is a lot of candy."

"He's a Black," James nodded towards Sirius. Peter gasped. The gray haired boy looked rather confused, but he didn't say anything. "And sure, you guys can sit down."

"I'm Peter Pettigrew, by the way, and this is Remus Lupin." Peter said, introducing himself and his companion. He sat down next to Sirius, and Remus took a seat next to James.

"I'm James Potter." Peter smiled in answer. They heard a small snore, and everyone jumped. It appeared that Remus had fallen asleep in his seat. "Poor bloke," James said. "He looks awful."

Sirius nodded, but in reality he was thinking about the houses, and the possibility that he might end up in Slytherin.

"Do you really think you'll be a Gryffindor?" Sirius asked James.

"Yeah. I mean my whole family was so it's almost a given." James answered. Sirius looked nervous.

"But my whole family's in Slytherin." Sirius said quietly. James looked uncomfortable.

"Well, I mean, Slytherin would be alright…" But he clearly was only saying this to make Sirius feel better.

"But I'm not like them. That means I won't be a Slytherin, right?" Sirius looked a little bit scared.

"Right, you're right, you probably won't be in Slytherin then." James reassured him, although he looked skeptical.

Peter had watched their whole conversation in something that might've been awe.

"I wish I could be in Gryffindor," He said miserably. "I'm sure I'll end up in Hufflepuff."

"Well, at any rate, I just hope we'll all be in the same house," James said, trying to lift up their spirits. They all nodded rather forlornly.

Sirius wondered what if would've been like to be James, and know that he was going to end up in Gryffindor his whole life. He had always thought he would end up in Slytherin, whether he wanted to or not. But now, he felt like maybe he could be a Gryffindor just like James.

They all felt the train screech to a halt, and they could hear a voice outside calling,

"First yers', first yer's over here!" They all looked at each other with glee, excited to finally be at Hogwarts. They were about to leave their compartment when James called,

"Wait! We should wake up Remus." They all nodded in agreement, so James gently shook Remus awake.

"Wha-whats going on?" Remus said groggily.

"We've arrived at Hogwarts, we just wanted to wake you up and make sure you got off the train in time," James said. Remus looked rather shocked at this display of kindness.

"Um, thanks, that was really nice," Remus responded. James nodded, and then making sure Remus was fully awake, they departed the train.

They found that the man yelling for first years was exceedingly large, and had a very hairy beard. James and Sirius laughed at his appearance, while Peter giggled behind them.

Hagrid directed the first years towards a fleet of boats that would sail across the lake and lead them to the castle. James, Sirius, and Peter were all seated in a boat. Remus was looking rather lost, so they all beckoned for him to join them. He was making his way over when the fourth seat was suddenly occupied by the red haired girl from the train. Remus ended up sitting in the boat next to them, which, unfortunately, housed Severus Snape.

"What's your name?" Peter asked Lily rather shyly.

"I'm Lily Evans." She didn't smile at him.

"These are-" Peter was about to introduce James and Sirius when Lily cut in,

"Oh don't bother introducing them. I already know _all_ about them." She then promptly turned her back on the boys and set her gaze firmly on the castle in the distance.

James put his finger next to his head and moved it in a circle, indicating that she was crazy. Sirius snickered.

"Poor Remus. He has to sit next to that greasy git." Sirius said, motioning towards where Remus was sitting. Snape was clearly glaring at Remus disdainfully.

"Hey!" Lily said, standing up for her friend. "Sev is very nice once you get to know him." James laughed.

"Yeah, about as nice as the giant squid. Oh look, there he is now!" James was pointing some distance away where a purple tentacle was clearly visible above the waves. "Come attack the red head! Her name is Lily!" He yelled to the giant squid. The tentacle disappeared under the water.

"Come on, Potter, I don't think the squid speaks English," Lily said.

"Look behind you, I think that'll change your mind," James laughed. Sirius and Peter were now pointing and snickering.

"I'm not going to look because there's nothing there. I know you're just trying to trick me." She did not look behind her, but if she had, she would've seen several large tentacles hovering slightly over her shoulder. She felt something wet and sticky touch her back. She tried to brush it off, but it just clamped down harder. Then she felt it happen again, but on her shoulder. Then her arm.

The squid had latched onto her and was trying to pull her into the lake.

"Help!" She squealed. All the boys obliged, even James, who couldn't contain his laughter. They tried to peel the tentacles off of her, but the squid was rather strong. They got into sort of an arm wrestle with the squid, which amused many of the other students, but was certainly not amusing to them. They sustained quite a few bruises.

Just as they reached the opposite bank, they managed to pull the tentacles off of Lily and scare the squid away. Lily did not thank them for their heroism and they didn't care, because in front of them was the castle.

It was glorious, and it seemed to be glowing with some other worldly light.

"Welcome, first yers,' to Hogwarts!"


	2. Chapter 2: The Sorting

Chapter 2: The Sorting

The first years were all standing in a line at the front of the hall, waiting for their name to be called so they could be sorted. They were all nervous, knowing that the house they were sorted into would carve their path for the rest of their lives.

"Avery, Thomas," became a Slytherin. Sirius heart quickened, his palms sweaty.

"Black, Sirius," called Professor Mcgonagall. The hall went silent as Sirius walked to the stool. Everyone wanted to know where the young Black heir would be placed. Sirius took a deep breath, and plunged his head into the grimy hat.

 _Another Black I see? Slytherin, surely?_

No! I don't want to be a Slytherin. I'm not like them. I don't _want_ to be like them, Sirius thought.

 _Hmmm, I see. You are certainly ambitious, maybe even a bit cunning? You would do well there…_

No! I can't be a Slytherin, I can't be!

 _You are also very loyal, intelligent, but not studious, hmmmm… well then, it'll have to be…_

 _"_ GRYFFINDOR!" The hat pronounced loudly. The hall was silent. Sirius was still standing by the stool, looking frightened. Narcissa was glaring, and so were several other Slytherins.

Suddenly, the sound of one person clapping and cheering could be heard. It was James. He gave Sirius a cheeky grin, and immediately Sirius felt lighter. Now all the Gryffindors were clapping as well. He smiled, and found a seat at the Gryffindor table.

"Crabbe, Alex" became a Slytherin, as well as

"Goyle, Edward."

The red haired girl from the train, Lily, became a Gryffindor. Sirius groaned inwardly at the thought of spending any more time with her.

Remus knew he was next. He could feel his heart rate quicken as he heard Professor Mcgonogall call

"Lupin, Remus" He shuddered as he walked up to the stool. He could feel the eyes of all the staff members staring at him, and he was sure the other students had noticed too. He took a deep breath, and pushed the hat onto his head.

 _Ooooh, well isn't this exciting! A werewolf…_

I'll work hard, I promise! Please don't throw me out!

 _Throw you out? Certainly not! You have far too much potential for that! Now let me see… where to put you…_

Remus breathed a sigh of relief.

 _I think you would do well in Ravenclaw, you like learning, and you are certainly intelligent and studious._

Yes, Ravenclaw, Remus thought. I'd fit in there.

 _You'd fit in, certainly, but it wouldn't challenge you. You need a challenge, Mr. Lupin. Something to push you in the right direction. You need to find courage, so of course, you'll have to be placed in…_

"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat pronounced loudly. Remus smiled. He didn't know if he was all that happy about being in the house of the brave, but at least he knew someone already. Sirius was waving happily at him from his place on the bench. Remus sat down next to him.

"Mckinnon, Marlene" became a Gryffindor, and then it was Peter's turn.

Peter eyes darted back and forth, preparing for his sorting. He was incredibly nervous about where he would be placed.

"Pettigrew, Peter" he heard the Professor call. He gulped, and walked up to the stool. He placed the hat on his head, and waited.

 _Well this certainly is complicated…_

Why? Peter panicked. I just want to be in the same house as my friends.

 _Gryffindor? Well I see you're very loyal, but you're also cunning, and you have a dangerous ambitious streak. You would do well in Slytherin, my friend._

No! Sirius and Remus are in Gryffindor. I want to be with them.

 _If you're sure… you'll have to be a…_

"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat bellowed. He smiled widely, and immediately took a seat across from Remus. Sirius and Remus both congratulated him, and then turned their attention back to the sorting.

James knew he was next, but he wasn't worried. He knew where he would be placed. Gryffindor, without a doubt.

"Potter, James" called Professor Mcgonogal. He walked up to the stool, and without any hesitance, pulled the hat onto his head.

 _Finally! Something easy! There's only one house for you.. and that is…_

"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat called, without even being on his head for more than a few seconds. He grinned, and made his way over to the Gryffindor table, and seated himself next to Peter.

"Snape, Severus" became a Slytherin, much to the disappointment of Lily Evans. She waved at him as he took a seat at the Slytherin table.

Then the stool and hat were hauled away, and it was time for Dumbledore to make his speech.

"Welcome back to Hogwarts for another year!" Dumbledore said jovially. "I just want to remind you of several rules that are to be followed. Please, no using magic in the corridors…"

James and Sirius both snorted loudly.

"Fat chance," James laughed.

"…There has also been a new plant placed on the grounds this year. It is called the whomping willow, and is named justly. Do not attempt to approach this plant, as I can only assume the results will be wholly unfortunate and painful. Now, I'm sure you're all very hungry, so let the feast begin!"

The tables were suddenly groaning under the weight of pork chops, huge tureens of soup, steak, mashed potatoes, and so much more. Remus had never seen so much food in his life.

As Sirius was stuffing roasted vegetables in his mouth, he asked Remus,

"How come everyone was staring at you when you were sorted? All the professors were looking at you." James nodded.

"Yeah, I noticed that too," Peter said thoughtfully.

"I dunno, I guess I didn't notice," Remus said quickly, biting into a chicken leg to avoid having to discuss it more.

"I've been thinking of ways to mess with people in our lessons tomorrow, and I have such a great idea!" James began bragging to Sirius.

"What is it?" Sirius asked, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"So our first lesson is potions, right? So we just add some extra beetle eyes or something to each of our cauldrons, and BAM! they explode!" James explained, looking gleeful. Sirius looked delighted.

"Let's do it!" Peter grinned.

"You shouldn't add beetle eyes if you want to make the cauldrons explode," Remus said suddenly. "You should add a few spider legs, or maybe some beetle juice."

Sirius, James, and Peter were all gaping at him.

"How did you know that?" Peter asked. Remus shrugged.

"I read a lot, I guess."

"That's brilliant, mate! Will you help us tomorrow?" He asked Remus. Remus looked a skeptical.

"What if we get detention?" He asked.

"We won't get detention! How would they know we were the ones to do it?" Sirius answered. Remus finally agreed, and all of the boys grinned.

When dinner was finished, Remus was cornered by Professor Mcgonogall. She told him that Dumbledore wanted to see him. So, while everyone else was following their prefects to their common rooms, he trudged up in the stairs in the opposite direction.

—

"Do you understand, Remus?" Dumbledore asked him seriously. Yes, Remus understood this crazy plan Dumbledore had come up with. Madam Pomfrey would walk him to the whomping willow, and guide him through the tunnel, before leaving him their in the shack by himself to survive the full moon alone.

"Yes, I understand," Remus said, swallowing thickly.

"Gryffindor house will be good to you, Remus. You must learn to have courage, even if that courage is to stand up to yourself." Remus only nodded, unsure of what Dumbledore meant. "Head back to your common room, now, Remus."

Remus got up from his chair and was about to disappear through the door when he heard Dumbledore say,

"Have a good first day, Remus." Remus gave a small smile in answer, and then descended down the golden stairs.

—

"You're pathetic!" Sirius said through laughter. "Honestly, I can't believe it! You're only a first year!"

"But I just know!" James defended himself. Remus was standing in the doorway of the dorm, not entirely sure what was going on. Sirius and Peter were laughing, and James looked sullen.

"Remus, you'll never guess what James just told us," Peter said, giggling.

"He has a crush!" Sirius burst out.

"And it's that red haired girl from the train! Evans!" Peter laughed again. James was blushing.

"Come on! She's pretty!" James said.

"Yeah, pretty but also absolutely mental!" Sirius chided.

"No, she's…." James couldn't come up with the right word.

"Feisty?" Remus offered.

"Yes! She's feisty!" James said. Sirius rolled his eyes. Even Remus was laughing now.

"Whatever. I'm going to bed," Peter said, rubbing his eyes. All of the boys agreed, and they all climbed into their four poster beds, dreaming of exploding cauldrons and potion covered Slytherins.


	3. Chapter 3: The First Week

The First Week

"Ooh, James look!" Peter was pointing at a large black owl, who was carrying a bright red envelope in it's mouth.

"Someone's been sent a howler!" James laughed. "Poor bloke." Sirius paled. The black, beady eyed owl was heading straight for him. James's eyes widened as the owl dropped the smoking envelope on Sirius's plate and swooped away. Sirius saw Narcissa smirk from across the hall.

"Just open it quick," James suggested, while filling his own plate with bacon. Sirius noddded, and tore open the envelope. Immediately, the hall was filled with the magnified voice of a shrieking Mrs. Black.

"HOW DARE YOU! YOU"VE DISGRACED YOUR FAMILY BY BEING PLACED IN GRYFFINDOR! IF YOU KNOW WHAT"S GOOD FOR YOU, YOU"LL BEG DUMBLEDORE TO RE-SORT YOU INTO SLYTHERIN! IF YOU DON"T, THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY!" The howler burst into flames and shriveled up. The hall was silent. All eyes were on Sirius. He saw everyone looking at him and he merely scooped some eggs onto his plate and asked Remus to pass the salt.

Narcissa was glaring daggers at him. He apparently had not had the reaction she had hoped for.

"Sweet! My Mum promised she'd send me a good haul!" James grinned as a tawny owl gently placed a large box of chocolates next to his juice. All the boy's breakfasts lay forgotten as they dug into the golden box.

"Here, Remus, you take these dark chocolate ones, is that alright?" James asked, trying to be diplomatic. Remus smiled and nodded, biting down on a square of chocolate.

Sirius was just shoving candy in his mouth as fast as he could, and Peter seemed to be choking on a caramel.

"Someone! Give Peter the Heimlich!" James smirked, thumping Peter on the back a few times.

"Thanks!" Peter squealed, as he forced down some more sweets.

—

"Your time starts…now!" Professor Slughorn announced. He had assigned them the task of brewing a basic cure for the hiccups.

"Psst, Remus," Sirius whispered across the aisle. He was partners with Peter, and James was partners with Remus. "What do you think we should add?" Remus surveyed the ingredients in front of them

"Defintely some powdered beetle shell. That'll work." Remus whispered.

"Okay, on the count of three," James said. "1…2…3!" And the four boys dumped the powder into their cauldrons. Immediately the potion began bubbling. The contents of their cauldrons rocketed into the air and sprayed their classmates with thick orange liquid. The four boys couldn't contain their laughter.

"Ugh!" Lily screeched. She had been hit with a large amount of the potion, and so had her cauldron. She was pretty sure her cure had been perfect, too. Now it was ruined. She glared at the boys.

"Black, Potter, Lupin, Pettigrew! Detention! I request that you discuss what your punishment should be with your head of house!" The boys looked at each other, trying not to giggle. "Now!" Slughorn shouted. They grabbed their bags and jogged out of the potions classroom. It wasn't until they were safely in an empty corridor that they all burst out laughing. James was rolling on the ground and howling.

"Did you see Slughorn's face?" James gasped, collapsing into another round of giggles.

—

"What on earth where you thinking?" Professor Mcgonagall asked the boys. They were all sitting in her office, and she was thoroughly unpleased with their antics. "Professor Slughorn was right to assign you detention! Your first one shall be tonight at 8 o clock, and you will prepare the potion ingredients for Professor Slughorn's class tomorrow."

"Awww, come on Minnie, I'd much rather spend time with you than Slughorn," Sirius flirted, batting his eyelashes.

"Mr. Black! You will refer to me as Professor, and you will now be suffering an additional detention for your cheek!" She looked shocked at Sirius's gall, but also slightly amused. "Off with you now!" She commanded, shooing the boys from her office.

"How'd you do that?" Peter asked, once they had rounded the corner and there was quite a bit of distance between Mcgonagall and themselves. Peter was very impressed with Sirius's conversation with their Professor. Sirius shrugged.

"I dunno. Just rolled of the tongue I guess," he smirked. The boys burst into yet another fit of giggles. They all felt the detention that night was well worth the entertainment this prank had caused.

—

Several hours later, they weren't so sure. Their hands were covered in esoteric juices used for preserving potential potions ingredients, and their backs ached from constantly bending over.

"How long has it been?" Sirius groaned, as he wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead.

"Only an hour," James sighed. "30 more minutes to go." They could see Slughorn glaring at them through the window, and Peter kept twitching, afraid the Professor was looking at him.

"Oh, calm down, Peter," Remus grumbled. He was reconsidering his decision to help James, Sirius, and Peter with their potions prank. Peter jumped at Remus's voice, and nodded.

Finally, after what felt like ages, Slughorn dismissed them. Once they had returned to the common room, Sirius dropped onto the couch.

"I think I'm gonna die. All I can smell is preserved slugs," Sirius cried. James ignored him.

"We should play gobstones!" All the boys looked at each other wearily. "Come on! My Dad just got me a new set, it'll be fun!" One by one, they all grudgingly agreed.

Two hours later, this night had turned out to be one of the best of Remus's life. They were all laughing - Sirius was teasing James about being covered in green goo from the gobstones, Remus was eating more of James's chocolate from the morning, and Peter was giggling at a joke James had told. He rolled the dice once more, and grinned from ear to ear. He had friends, Remus thought. This was something that friends did with each other.

—

"What time is it?" Remus yawned. He sat up, and realized he was covered in sticky green goo. He was laying on top of James, who was rubbing his eyes. Sirius lay at James's feet, with Peter laying on top of Sirius.

"Ouch," Peter winced, sitting up and rubbing his back where Sirius's chest had been. Sirius noticed, and glared.

"You think that hurts? Try being used as a mattress all night," Sirus moaned. He began stroking his thighs.

"What are you doing?" Peter shrieked.

"You've got a big bum! My thighs are sore!" Sirius complained, trying to defend himself. Peter looked disgusted.

"7," James answered, ignoring Sirius and Peter.

"I guess we stayed up a little too late last night," Sirius said, standing up and stretching, still rubbing his thighs.

"Er, Remus, could you move? Your rear end is literally on my chest," James asked, chortling with laughter. Remus blushed. He quickly stood up and tried to wipe some of the goo off.

"You're going to have to shower for a good hour to get this stuff off," James said sagely, pointing towards the green goo covering both of them. Remus sighed. Last night was worth it, he thought, because he was sure he had friends now. He wasn't alone anymore.

—

"2 feet of parchment on the steps of transfiguring a needle into a button?" James groaned, as the four boys walked out of Transfiguration. "I can't believe it! That's going to take forever! It's only our second day back!" Sirius nodded glumly. They continued walking, Peter grumbling about the essay along with James.

"Never thought I'd see the day where a Black was walking with blood traiters and half bloods," they heard someone sneer. Sirius whirled around to find the voice. It was Mulciber, accompanied by Snape and Nott.

"How dare you…" Sirius whispered. He drew his wand. "Petrificus Totalus!" He cried, paralyzing Mulciber and Nott. Snape suddenly looked rather frightened, and James, Remus, and Peter watched in awe. They had no idea Sirius knew this many spells, or had had any practice dueling.

"Expelliarmus!" Snape yelled, as Sirius's wand flew through the air and landed at his feet. Now Snape was smirking, clearly thinking that he had won. Sirius snarled and ran at him, landing a punch squarely on Snape's overly large nose.

"Sirius!" James cried, grabbing his arms and dragging him back.

"Fighting in the corridors, Black, Snape, detention for both of you," Slughorn said, appearing from around the corner. Sirius nodded mutely.

"Let's go, mate," James said quietly, and accompanied by Peter and Remus, they brought Sirius back to the common room.

Sirius was quiet for the rest of the day, clearly still seething about the morning's incident. Privately, Sirius was worried about how his family would react the next time they saw him. He knew they would be angry, but he hadn't really thought about what they might do until now. His cousin Bellatrix was 21 now, and she was utterly terrifying. He wasn't really all that afraid of her, but Sirius knew she would pitch a fit when she heard where he had been sorted. He winced, and tried to ignore the anxiety that was disrupting his day. When he went to sleep that night, he dreamt of his family, and how everything might have been different if he had been sorted into Slytherin.

—

"Remus? Remus?" James asked, worriedly, putting down the piece of bacon he was munching on. "Are you alright? You're not answering my question." Remus shook himself out of his trance, and tried to turn his attention toward James. The truth was, the full moon was next week and he was terribly nervous that his new friends might find out his secret.

"Oh, sorry," Remus muttered. "What'd you ask?"

"I asked if you had started the transfiguration homework yet?" James asked again.

"Yeah, I finished it last night." Remus answered. James stared at him like he was crazy.

"You've already finished it? It's not even due until next Monday!" Remus shrugged, and turned his attention back to his toast, and his impending transformation.

—

"You know, Sirius," James said, "I've been thinking. Today has been far too boring for my liking. We need to do something interesting." Sirius grinned mischievously.

"I've got the perfect idea."

—

"You're kidding right?" Remus asked, a few hours later, once they had told him their plan. "I mean, it's very ironic, I suppose, and you can't get a detention for following the rules…. even if technically, that's not how the rule is meant to be interpreted…" Remus said thoughtfully.

"So you'll help us?" Sirius asked hopefully.

"Why not?" Remus answered. He needed something to get his mind off the full moon anyway.

"And we already talked to Peter, so I think we're good to go," James said happily. "Let's get started!"

Once they were safely in the boys dormitories, Remus was surprised how much thought had already gone into their plan. They had a library book explaining the spell they wanted to use, and apparently they had even approached Professor Flitwick about what the charm was called. Of course, they didn't tell him what they were planning to do with their new information.

"So, Sirius, you should charm the beds to levitate, seeing as you're good at charms," James told Sirius. Sirius agreed, and with a wave of his wand, made all four beds hover slightly off the ground.

"Okay, now for the compass spell, Remus, do you want to do that?" Remus shrugged.

"Alright," he answered. Nothing appeared to happen. "Did it work?"

"I think so," Peter answered, looking at the library book. "It says here that you won't be able to see the charm, but you'll be able to move by leaning or pointing."

"Wicked!" James grinned. "Alright, let's go!" He shouted, hopping onto his bed. The other three boys copied him. "Let's go to the Transfiguration classroom," James suggested. "I want Minnie to see this!" So off they went, their floating beds carrying them through the empty corridors until they had reached the Transfiguration classroom, and saw Mcgonagall inside her office.

"What are you doing? No students out of bed after 9, you know that! Ten points from Gryffindor," She said.

"But Professor," James said, grinning, "We aren't out of bed, come see!" She came out of her office and was amazed by the sight that greeted her. The four boys were each in their own four poster bed that was levitating slightly off the ground.

"We haven't technically broken any rules, Professor," Remus said slyly. Mcgonagall was shocked at shy little Remus Lupin's cheek. She opened her mouth, and then closed it again. Peter laughed.

"Just, go back to your common room," She said weakly.

"As you wish, Professor," Sirius said, and they all commanded their beds to take them back to Gryffindor tower.

They laughed all the way back to the dormitory.

The four boys had all curled up in their beds, which were now back on the ground, and were trying to go to sleep when James announced,

"I'm going to ask Lily out tomorrow," James said slyly. Remus snorted. "What? She won't be able to resist my innate sexiness." Now Sirius snorted.

"There is nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, innately sexy about you," Peter chortled. James looked hurt.

"I'll have you know the school trousers do amazing things for my bottom," James said, highly affronted. Remus rolled his eyes.

"Good night, James," Remus said, rolling over, his back now facing James.

"Good night, Remus," James said quietly, shutting his eyes.

—

"I think it's time," James whispered to Sirius. Sirius nodded.

"Go for it," Sirius said. James swallowed, and jumped onto the Gryffindor table. His foot landed in someone's bowl of cereal, and he somehow managed to also kick an entire platter of scrambled eggs on Peter's lap.

"AAHHHHHH!" Peter screamed. "The eggs are burning my crotch!" He was now rubbing the front of his pants with his hand, trying to soothe the burned area.

James had certainly gotten what he wanted. The entire hall's attention was now focused on him.

" Lily Evans," James said grandly. "Would you like to go on a date with me?" He winked at her. She wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"No, not until pigs fly, Potter. And certainly not until your disgusting mate stops pouring pumpkin juice on his crotch," Lily snapped. She grabbed her book bag and raced out of the hall. What she had said was true though, as James turned his attention towards Peter and realized he was, in fact, in the process of pouring a pitcher of juice on his crotch area, whilst still rubbing it with his hands.

James groaned. This had not gone at all as he had planned. Suddenly, he felt his shoulder being dragged downwards, and he found himself being pulled back onto the bench. Sirius was looking nervously behind James.

"Potter! What on earth was that? Detention, certainly. I expect to see you at 6 o clock in my office, no butts," Professor Mcgonagall told him severely. James put his face in his hands. A 6 o clock detention meant he wouldn't have time to eat dinner. This was turning out to be one of the most embarrassing days of his life.

"Damn it, Peter! Would you stop humping Remus?" James heard Sirius say. He glanced up, and found that Peter was now rubbing his crotch up against Remus's shoulder, in an attempt to get rid of the burning sensation that still lingered. Remus looked incredibly uncomfortable.

"Oh boy," James said, and promptly buried his face in his arms for the rest of breakfast.

—

By the end of the week, Remus had realized several things about his new friends. First off, they were smart. They hardly needed to study, and they already knew about half the course material.

They were kind too, he had realized, as they always included him in their schemes and ideas. (Which there had been a scary amount of, having it only been the first week.) As loyal and understanding as they appeared to be, he was certain they would never accept him if they figured out his secret. He was becoming increasingly nervous about the next week's transformation.

He liked having friends though. He liked that he was liked, and was happy to be included, even when it meant breaking the rules. He was having a tremendously fun time at Hogwarts, and he could hardly wait for each morning to come.


End file.
